In December, with Xbox One freshly released, we delivered our verdict on the interface. It was not an encouraging one. Rushed to market, woefully designed and lacking feature parity not only in relation to PS4 but the Xbox 360, it remains one of the most curious oversights of this new generation: it is possible to see how Microsoft convinced itself that always-online and a TV focus was the best approach for its console, but there are no spreadsheets in the world that would suggest that throwing away a category-leading multiplayer system is the key to success.

Three months later and, as we speculated, ahead of the expected arrival of new players courtesy of Titanfall, Microsoft has issued the first two updates to the console’s frontend. They address some of the more obvious flaws: the woefully under-featured party system, the inability to discover which of your friends is online and the absence of a way to manage the too-quickly filled storage space (In Microsoft’s defence, this is at least a sign of the console’s considerable games lineup; for all Sony’s success in positioning itself as “for the players” it hasn’t delivered the software that Microsoft has).

The result is an undoubted improvement. The party system is now more or less the same as it was on Xbox 360 and it’s easier to find and play with your friends. UK users can actually use the TV features thanks to the addition of a 50Hz output option, and they can disable the Kinect gestures that have blighted the experience for those in the US.

There’s also an almost unseemly focus on streaming via the long-awaited arrival of the Twitch app. Understandably delighted by the discovery that it can finally boast a demonstrable technical superiority to PlayStation, Microsoft has made much of a robust featureset, and with good reason: higher-resolution footage, the ability to archive streams, join games in progress and other additions are all excellent features, and it does show every sign of justifying its description as a next-gen streaming system. By building broadcast notifications into the very top level of the interface, Microsoft has demonstrated how seriously it is taking the offering, and how much it expects it to be used.

We remain unconvinced that building it out was reason enough to entirely skip the streaming revolution that PS4 has been a part of since its launch, and which even now ensures that the previously unloved camera peripheral is so rare as to be considered contraband – but the demonstrated functionality is compelling and deserves to build a big user base. It also, finally, gives the gaming audience a reason to use Kinect. If streaming proves as popular on Xbox as it has on PS4, then this could finally justify the device’s inclusion before Microsoft’s own studios can.

This is encouraging. It demonstrates that Microsoft does indeed understand the gaming audience it did such a poor job of reaching last year, and the updated party features prove that there is after all a section of the development team that caters to those who would rather spend time on killstreaks than CSI. This is, at last, approaching something like the functionality that should have been there at launch.

But it’s not there yet. Titanfall will surely be a hit and will help sell Xbox One to skeptics, but the newcomers it will bring will still find a console that, while surer on its feet, still lacks an interface deserving the “next-gen” moniker. Achievements remain too well hidden, sign-in notifications are entirely absent, biographical detail and real names aren’t available, and there’s no external storage support.

These are smaller irritations than we raged at last Christmas, but they’re irritations nonetheless, and with Sony still ahead in sales, perception and perceived value, any irritation is significant.

Microsoft has proved both that it is listening and that it’s able to correct these oversights – and has partially justified its app-based interface strategy – but there is a long way to go. The interface and the overall offering will require many more updates between now and the all-important Christmas sales period.

Once the trump card of Titanfall has been played, the staff in Redmond will be hoping that Sony has not been able to prepare bombshells of its own. At GDC, and E3, we will find out.

they could probably take the 360, give it better hardware and bingo.... everything built in from day one.
something MS singularly failed to do and gave us the mess that is Xbox.

Do we think only one console is imperfect as they are right now? I'll tell you what I enjoy the most out of my consoles other than gaming... MEDIA PLAYBACK!!! I just love having MY music and MY movies on my console and playback straight from it. I guess MS aint the only one who shipped an unfinished UI!

EDIT: At least MS has the merit, so far, to be working on and releasing CONSTANT functionality upgrades.

Do we think only one console is imperfect as they are right now? I'll tell you what I enjoy the most out of my consoles other than gaming... MEDIA PLAYBACK!!! I just love having MY music and MY movies on my console and playback straight from it. I guess MS aint the only one who shipped an unfinished UI! EDIT: At least MS has the merit, so far, to be working on and releasing CONSTANT functionality upgrades. Sent from my C6506 using Tapatalk

they could probably take the 360, give it better hardware and bingo.... everything built in from day one.
something MS singularly failed to do and gave us the mess that is Xbox.

Yeah, that's exactly what Microsoft should have done. smh

No need to code a single thing, just clone the hdd from a 360 to the XB1, done.

Yes, they failed to have everything on day 1. Wow. Never heard of that happening before. I'm guessing if everything from the 360 was on the XB1, day one, the complaints would be, "they didn't add anything...????".

No need to code a single thing, just clone the hdd from a 360 to the XB1, done.

Yes, they failed to have everything on day 1. Wow. Never heard of that happening before. I'm guessing if everything from the 360 was on the XB1, day one, the complaints would be, "they didn't add anything...????".

People forget that the xbox360 interface evolved over the years to become what it is today. I think the xb1 was going to launch in 2014 but sony forced them to launch before everything was ready. Its cool that they are getting the updates out quickly though.

No need to code a single thing, just clone the hdd from a 360 to the XB1, done.

Yes, they failed to have everything on day 1. Wow. Never heard of that happening before. I'm guessing if everything from the 360 was on the XB1, day one, the complaints would be, "they didn't add anything...????".

FFS...
you take 8 years of dev from 360. you ad improvements and you have Xbox.
you then use the following years to add/improve what you have. what you don't do is make it worse than the system its replacing.

People forget that the xbox360 interface evolved over the years to become what it is today. I think the xb1 was going to launch in 2014 but sony forced them to launch before everything was ready. Its cool that they are getting the updates out quickly though.

stop using excuses.. yes the 360 may have improved over the years as will the Xbox's. but you do not release a console by not improving or including what works on 360.

as an Xbox owner i expected the Xbox to equal or surpass everything the 360 does from day one. it did not. MS failed and are now suffering the consequences.

stop using excuses.. yes the 360 may have improved over the years as will the Xbox's. but you do not release a console by not improving or including what works on 360.

But this is software we are talking about. I could see delaying if there was something as bad as the rrod fiasco, but this is software updates that can easily be rolled out to the masses. No one is denying that x1 was missing features it should of had at launch.

as an Xbox owner i expected the Xbox to equal or surpass everything the 360 does from day one. it did not. MS failed and are now suffering the consequences.

i would hardly call what's happening suffering. In some ways xb1 did surpass what the 360. Every time I boot up my xbox360, I'm reminded of it. The updates seem to be coming fast so I can't complain. It really hasn't hampered my gaming experience much at all.

I really never had a problem with the UI before this update. IMO, the X1's UI is much better than the PS4's bare bones feel and function but that's just me. That article touched on a big thing for me: The camera/Kinect. I've been searching high and low for a PS4 camera so I can start a twitch channel, yet none are to be found. Now the X1 has twitch support and Kinect came packed into my X1 box so that solves that. Anyone doubting that MS will make the X1 UI more robust and refined with time is delusional or out of touch with what they did last gen.

I really never had a problem with the UI before this update. IMO, the X1's UI is much better than the PS4's bare bones feel and function but that's just me. That article touched on a big thing for me: The camera/Kinect. I've been searching high and low for a PS4 camera so I can start a twitch channel, yet none are to be found. Now the X1 has twitch support and Kinect came packed into my X1 box so that solves that. Anyone doubting that MS will make the X1 UI more robust and refined with time is delusional or out of touch with what they did last gen.

I really never had a problem with the UI before this update. IMO, the X1's UI is much better than the PS4's bare bones feel and function but that's just me. That article touched on a big thing for me: The camera/Kinect. I've been searching high and low for a PS4 camera so I can start a twitch channel, yet none are to be found. Now the X1 has twitch support and Kinect came packed into my X1 box so that solves that. Anyone doubting that MS will make the X1 UI more robust and refined with time is delusional or out of touch with what they did last gen.

Being a sole ps owner last gen (had a 360 for a couple of months for splinter cell and gears), ps4 UI is a big step up from the slowness I have been accustomed to on the ps3. Xchat, zooming through the UI and multi tasking without a hiccup is more than a welcomed change on the ps. Barren? Yes, But I doubt I spend much time on the UI, when I do, am probably checking out my recorded gameplay or setting up a party chat or loading up a game.

The DUI (dynamic user interface) lol does need some improvements to make it more personal like custom backgrounds and folders

Being a sole ps owner last gen (had a 360 for a couple of months for splinter cell and gears), ps4 UI is a big step up from the slowness I have been accustomed to on the ps3. Xchat, zooming through the UI and multi tasking without a hiccup is more than a welcomed change on the ps. Barren? Yes, But I doubt I spend much time on the UI, when I do, am probably checking out my recorded gameplay or setting up a party chat or loading up a game. The DUI (dynamic user interface) lol does need some improvements to make it more personal like custom backgrounds and folders Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk

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